


Undertale: Inter-Species Socialization

by ArgentDandelion



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Analysis, Gen, Nonfiction
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-21
Updated: 2019-07-21
Packaged: 2020-07-10 02:54:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,124
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19898674
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ArgentDandelion/pseuds/ArgentDandelion
Summary: Talks about difficulties in interpreting social cues between individuals, cultures, and species, which justifies Papyrus using a manual simply to socialize with Frisk.





	Undertale: Inter-Species Socialization

Some think Papyrus is very naive or socially inept, as he used a rulebook/guidebook just to date/hang out with Frisk. However, it’s more likely Papyrus is just being reasonably cautious about socializing with a species he has little knowledge about, and has never met before.

Firstly, one should note merely making friends and “hanging out” can be difficult. While humans are social creatures well-equipped for interpreting other humans’ emotions and desires, different cultures show and interpret social cues differently.  
For example, in Japan people may close their eyes to listen better to someone’s words, but someone from the United States may interpret this sign of attentiveness as boredom.  
This just adds onto individuals’ differences: some keep their emotions bottled up and don’t disclose much in voices, words, or facial expressions. Others show emotions in seemingly contradictory ways, like smiling when angry or afraid.

Interpreting emotions correctly is crucial to start and maintain friendships. This is trickier still when dating, as people apply higher standards for love interests. Indeed, dating is so complex and variable humans often consult many sources of information before or during dating.

This is all for a species so genetically similar two humans on opposite sides of the world are more closely related than two chimpanzees in the same group. Monsters, though, are much more variable than humanity, in tendencies and preferences as well as size and shape. One can only imagine how much more complicated socialization in the Underground can get.

* * *

##  **Visual Cues**

Some of the various “breeds” (for lack of a better word) of monsters resemble certain animals, with similar behavior, likes, and possibly [instincts](http://argentdandelion.tumblr.com/post/182042292213/do-monsters-have-instincts). One example is the Canine Unit, who act just like dogs.

If one assumes animal-like monsters act much like the animals they resemble, socialization could get really confusing. In dogs, tail-wagging is famously a sign of happiness, but depending on the movement’s direction, it can also mean the dog is angry or afraid. When cats wag their tails, though, it means they’re irritated, and when squirrels do so, they are frustrated. Much like the “sleeping while someone is talking” example, monsters inexperienced with other breeds may seriously misinterpret other monsters’ emotions and intents.

This isn’t even considering non-animal-like monsters; one can only speculate how they would emote. Several monsters apparently lack mouths; a few lack even visible eyes. Notably, Sans lacks eyebrows[1](https://argentdandelion.tumblr.com/post/183899667671/undertale-inter-species-socialization#fn:1), never opens his mouth (if he even can) and his smile changes only once, and briefly. If monsters lack certain facial features or have frozen features at all times, it could hinder self-expression.[2](https://argentdandelion.tumblr.com/post/183899667671/undertale-inter-species-socialization#fn:2)

Humans seem to have specialized brain circuits for interpreting human (but not animal) faces. Yet, monsters’ faces and bodies are much more variable than humans’, so they’d have to learn how to interpret the social cues of many kinds of bodies.

* * *

##  **Other Sensory Channels**

The above section covers just visual cues, but animals use other senses to convey and interpret emotional cues, too. If the Dogi are any indication, dog monsters are red-green colorblind (like dogs) and can identify things by smell. Furthermore, humans use voice cues as well as visual ones.

If monsters lack eyes, they aren’t just deprived of eye-based expression, but can’t pick up on visual cues. Some monsters never (e.g., Moldsmal, Shyren) or almost never (Grillby) speak; they might have to rely on other means of communication. (Sign language, perhaps: some fanfics suggest sign language is common in the Underground for monsters who cannot speak.) Many monsters lack visible ears, too, which could hinder communicating through sound.

The one thing monsters have in common are bodies made of magic and production of magical bullets: a book in the Snowdin library even points out “humans will never know the joys of expressing themselves through magic.” It’s likely they can therefore use magic to make interspecies communication easier.

Visually speaking, the behavior of Dogamy and Dogaressa’s dog bullets (bullet emitters?) change if either is killed, and Migosp’s bug bullet (?) stays in place and dances if it’s alone and happy. If Frisk is low in HP, Toriel’s bullets (probably intentionally) dodge their SOUL; Asriel’s bullets do the same when he’s sad in the final phase of his fight. Sans and Papyrus both produce a [distinctive bullet pattern](https://zarla-s.tumblr.com/post/132713136209/tragic-detail-of-the-day-i-posted-before-about) when thinking about each other.

* * *

##  **Other Considerations**

Some breeds are likely easier to socialize with than others. If repeat encounters with the same kind of monster represents different individuals of the same breed, evidently members of some breeds all have similar personalities. (e.g., Temmies are eccentric airheads who like cute things, Aarons like muscles and flexing, Whimsuns are always shy, Migosp is aggressive around other monsters, etc.) So if one’s familiar with a member of one such breed, it probably makes socializing with other members of that breed easier.

Monsters’ bodies don’t just differ in shape, but also physiology. Monsters would have to take that into account when socializating. For example, Alphys can’t spontaneously invite Undyne, a fish monster, to the MTT resort for a date, as she would die of heatstroke if she tried to simply walk through Hotland’s lava caverns.  
Monsters’ sizes differ in meaningful ways, too: Asgore’s so big, especially with his horns, he might have trouble getting into buildings without scraping his horns on the doorway. Large monsters, too, would need to have appropriately-sized furniture for short monsters visiting their houses.

Humans, however, rarely have to consider size and physiology when socializing with other humans, because they are all so similar. Humans are homogeneous enough they can afford to extrapolate that what works for one human will work for another. (to limited degrees of success) All of these things mean monsters must learn a lot more about people as collections of traits, rather than extrapolating from every other one of their species, as in humans.

Papyrus has never even seen a human before, much less dated/hung out with one. Unlike Alphys, he doesn’t even indirect experience with how they behave through their media. It’s reasonable for him to check out a book on dating/hangouts for socializing with Frisk, and also very plausible such a book would exist in the Underground’s social situation. It’s certainly not a sign he’s naive or socially deficient.

* * *

  1. Yes, really. His expressions never show eyebrows. [↩︎](https://argentdandelion.tumblr.com/post/183899667671/undertale-inter-species-socialization#fnref:1)

  2. Some fan works have pointed out self-expression problems. If the author recalls correctly, in _Soul Dichromatism_ Papyrus tells a human-turned-monster that skeletons’ facial expressions are “subtle” and can be difficult for non-skeletons to pick up on, especially for skeletons with frozen expressions like Sans. In one comic related to _Handplates_ , Asgore is confused about how a baby Sans smiles even when upset, and Sans’ father explains skeletons can make their eyes glow as a workaround for showing emotions. [↩︎](https://argentdandelion.tumblr.com/post/183899667671/undertale-inter-species-socialization#fnref:2)





End file.
